City to start urine tests for night club raids

Evi Mariani, The Jakarta Post/Jakarta

Jakarta Police will soon have two mobile labs to test the urine of suspected drug abusers in the city, National Narcotics Agency (BNN) director Comr. Gen. Makbul Padmanagara said on Wednesday.

"The devices are from Germany and now are in Singapore. We expect them to arrive here next week. Each of the devices is worth Rp 1.5 billion (US$163,256)," he said.

The devices were bought with the 2004 state budget.

Makbul said police in many countries used the labs when they raided night clubs. Each device can produce test results on up to 1,000 urine samples in only an hour.

"The technology is expected to be useful tool for the police when apprehending suspects. The test results can be used as evidence to strengthen the prosecution," he said.

Police cannot arrest suspects without evidence of a drug in their possession. Suspects often immediately throw away drugs when they realize police are raiding a premises.

Presently, if they test a suspect for drugs they must wait for two days for urine test results.

Makbul said the labs would act as a deterrent to drug use in nightspots in the city that are notorious for drug dealing.

Jakarta was the center for the pilot project, he said.

"If they work well in Jakarta, we will put eight more units in other cities that are drug dealing centers," Makbul said. "I hope in two months, the devices will bear fruit."

Makbul did not reveal how police planned to conduct the raids and whether all night club patrons or only dealers would be targeted.